Use of nature and the supernatural in MacbethThe aura of darkness, deception and horror present in William Shakespeare's tragedy, Macbeth, envelops the entire play and is created mainly by the sense of violence and foreboding evoked by the images. The dominant images of nature and the supernatural contribute to the atmosphere of this tragedy. The predictions of the strange sisters, along with natural forces and supernatural images, have led to chaos in Scotland due to their impact on the characters in the play, resulting in many disappointments and deaths. Nature is an image evoked many times, in both physical and human aspects. Storms caused by the witches, consisting of heavy rain, lightning and thunder, cause darkness to descend upon Scotland. This darkness sets the mood for the horrors that occur in the tragedy, which is seen by Duncan being killed at night and Banquo being killed in the darkness, which is represented by him and Fleance entering with a torch. The famous romantic essayist Thomas De Quincey explains the purpose of this dark phenomenon by saying that the "'world of darkness'" replaces the "'world of ordinary life'" after Macbeth kills Duncan (Harris and Scott, comp. 166). . Macbeth goes to the witches for the second time in a dark place, where the darkness coincides with the horror that is yet to come. Witches create other natural forces besides storms and darkness, as seen when they cause the wind to push a sailor's ship onto an island and leave him shipwrecked to suffer and die. Witches primarily represent the dominant image of the supernatural and are called the "weird sisters", meaning...... middle of paper ......nzen, and Scott, Mark W. ed. "The Tragedy of Macbeth." Shakespearean Criticism, vol. 3. Detroit: Gale Research Company, 1986.Hugget, Richard. Supernatural on stage: The curse of Macbeth: origins, background and history. New York: Taplinger Publishing Co, 1975. 153-211.Lewis, William Dodge. Shakespeare said it. Syracuse: Syracuse University, 1961.Quincey, Thomas De Harris Essay, Laurie Lanzen and Scott, Mark W. ed. "The Tragedy of Macbeth." Shakespearean Criticism, vol. 3. Detroit: Gale Research Company, 1986.Traversi, DA essay by Harris, Laurie Lanzen and Scott, Mark W. ed. "The Tragedy of Macbeth." Shakespearean Criticism, vol. 3. Detroit: Gale Research Company, 1986. Wells, Stanley, and Taylor Gary. and. The Oxford Shakespeare, the complete works: Macbeth. By William Shakespeare. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988. 975-999.